Q+A with Xiaojing Gao
Pratt institute BFA 2026
The Coral Revelation
In Next Gen / No Kill, we spotlight standout fashion graduates whose work opens up new conversations and possibilities. From New York’s top programs and beyond, these are the designers shaping a future of fashion defined by intelligence, creativity, and intention.
What is the inspiration or concept behind your collection?
The inspiration for this collection comes from diagrams illustrating the coral bleaching process and the resulting bleached specimens I saw in a museum. These specimens prompted me to reflect on global environmental degradation, ocean acidification, and global warming. For me, coral bleaching serves as both a warning signal from nature and a wake-up call for humanity. Inspired by these phenomena, this collection primarily explores how fashion design can address environmental issues and proposes the role of designers as “tailors of nature and humanity.” Through the integration of digital design and physical production, this collection aims to demonstrate that “despair” is not an endpoint, but rather the starting point for action—design can serve as a vital medium for healing ecological fractures and raising public awareness.
What’s one material or technique you’re currently obsessed with?
Right now, I’m most fascinated by using sodium alginate to create bio-fabrics in various shapes. This material is incredibly malleable—it can be poured into molds, spread into thin layers, or mixed with natural pigments or plant fibers to produce fabrics with varied colors and patterns. The process of making it feels like an experiment full of surprises—every time it cures and dries, even the slightest variation in conditions results in different textures, levels of transparency and softness. Moreover, it’s a very eco-friendly material. I’m eager to gradually discover the optimal recipes for creating different accessories and even clothing.
What does fashion mean to you today?
For me, fashion is more than just telling stories through fabrics and silhouettes—it’s an attitude, a choice. Behind every garment, there’s a history, a culture, a brand concept, and a designer’s response to the world; they are never fleeting trends, but rather the most silent yet sincere narrators of an era. And those who wear them are also using their clothes to express their own stance, aesthetic, and attitude toward life.
Today, when we choose to “wear” the story of ecological restoration, we are speaking up for nature in the most everyday way—reminding ourselves and others that restoration can begin with each and every person, and with every piece of clothing.
What’s one thing you wish the fashion industry would leave behind—and one thing it should embrace?
For today’s fashion industry, the most important thing to abandon is the disconnect between words and actions. Most brand CEOs only verbally claim that “sustainability is a priority,” but when designing products, they still focus solely on trends and costs. This is a very dangerous disconnect; it means that sustainability is no longer a course of action, but rather a hypocritical “banner” used for brand packaging.
What I hope the industry will truly embrace is a gradual return to the concept of slow fashion, and using existing technology to address its limitations. Using eco-friendly fabrics, manufacturing durable products, and placing repair, resale, and recycling at the core. This way, sustainability will no longer be a self-congratulatory performance, but a genuine transformation.”
Who or what has shaped your design values most?
My design concept is: fashion should coexist with nature. I hope garments can serve as a medium that connects people to the past and to nature, and what helped me shape this concept most was the history I found in different museums. They taught me to observe and reflect. While the stories behind historical garments and museum specimens deeply fascinate me, they also reveal many harrowing details about how humanity has harmed its own kind, exploited nature, and disregarded other forms of life. I cannot remain indifferent to these stories, and I hope to use design as a medium to reconnect people with nature and the past. I want people to begin noticing these scars once again and to reflect on how we can do our best to “mend” those fractures.
If you could design for anyone in the world, who would it be—and why?
If I could design for anyone in the world, rather than a specific individual, I’d prefer to design for people between the ages of 18 and 30. They’re at a critical stage of shaping their identities and establishing their values. They have enough curiosity about the world and are willing to express their attitudes through their outfits. Designing for them means accompanying and guiding them toward choosing a more responsible lifestyle—opting for natural fabrics, durable designs, and craftsmanship with a story behind it. This group will be the main consumers of the future. If they can begin to understand and explore eco-friendly lifestyles at this age, there’s a high probability that these habits will stay with them for life and ultimately have an indirect impact on the entire industry.
Three things keeping you sane right now
Learning different handicraft techniques, visit different parks to observe animals, listen to music
One word to describe your design approach: Eco-friendly
Where can we find you online?
My website
@jing828_
